Park and ride in Utah at one of America’s best ski slopes

With fresh snow that falls well into April, Park City in Utah is heaven for skiiers.

Picturesque: Stay warm thanks to the heated seats in the bubble chairlift at The Canyons resort (Picture: Justin Olsen)

It is the second week of April, usually the soggy, slushy, limp tail of the ski season. ButÂ beyond my towering stack of breakfast pancakes, outside, the snow is falling thick and fast. A foot of fresh snow has fallen overnight and, by the time I reach the runs, the deep piles of powder could easily fool me into thinking itâs February.

I have flown in from New York to spend the weekend at the three resorts that make up the Park City ski scene: Deer Valley, The Canyons and Park City Mountain Resort.

In a week, the lifts and hire shops will close but off-piste-loving locals continue to ski well into the summer months and, at the nearby Snowbird resort, slopes stay open until July 4.

Before Iâd ventured out west this winter, Iâd assumed Utahâs bumper-sticker boast of âthe greatest powder on Earthâ was merely patriotic first-pumping hyperbole. It turns out I was wrong. This Friday morning, the friendly hire-shop man takes one look at the weather, kits me out with twin-tip powder skis and soon I am burning down the near-deserted slopes of Deer Valley with my free mountain guide for the day, Sarah.

No snowboarders are allowed at Deer Valley, which has been voted the No.1 resort in North America for the past four years. I personally have no beef with boarders but the skiing-only slopes feel incredibly civilised.

At every queue-free chairlift we shuffle straight on and Deer Valleyâs smartly uniformed ski valets brush the snow from the seat and offer us tissues. This is skiing in comfort and style. Even the mountain-top restaurants are luxurious, with fire pits, gourmet food and cocktails.

On Saturday morning, my friend Gemma and I hit the slopes of Park City Mountain Resort. With the most highly rated terrain in the US, Park City is larger at 1,335ha (3,300 acres) and less sedate than Deer Valley, 819ha (2,026 acres), with a younger, more European atmosphere.

The snow is still falling fast and hard as we swoosh past well-preserved remnants of the mountainâs silver-mining past, the industry that made Park City a boom town in the late 19th century.

There is one possible fly in the ointment: we have been warned the low-key US après-ski may not match the Jägermeister-fuelled nightlife of European resorts. This is particularly pertinent in Utah, with its history as a dry Mormon state.

Fortunately, licensing laws were relaxed for the 2002 Winter Olympics, so in the interests of research, we make a tour of the pretty resort townâs bars and nightclubs.

We begin in the High West whiskey distillery, a cosy but glamorous new bar, with an extensive list of whiskey-based cocktails. It is possible to ski straight in off the mountain but skiing out again might be a problem.

Warmed with an Applejack Sazerac, a muddle of rye, absinthe, applejack and bitters, we make our way up the steep and buzzing Main Street, to Upstairs, a two-storey bar, where a local band is entertaining the rugged-up crowd.

Sadly, at nearby nightclub Downstairs, the DJ for tonight, Samantha Ronson, is a no-show, so instead we round off our tour at No Name Bar, a cavernous joint heavy with plaid shirts and testosterone. The only thing deeper than the powder on the slopes is the queue of twenty and thirtysomething blokes at the bar.

The blue skies and bright sunshine on Sunday morning whip away any of the whiskey-tinged cobwebs as we explore The Canyons. The largest of the three resorts, with 1,618ha (4,000 acres) of runs, it has undergone an enormous overhaul.

There are new lifts and terrain, and a ski beach (pictured left), bars and an outdoor concert venue at the base of the mountain. Last winter saw the opening of the resortâs pride and joy, the bubble chairlift, with heated seats and a canopy. Snug in our pod, our guide for the day, Michael, points out The Colony, a collection of vast mansions on the mountain, where actor Will Smith owns a home.

On Sunday afternoon, standing at the top of The Canyonsâ Iron Mountain, and studying the vast undulating Utah vista, I seriously consider buying one of those aformentioned bumper stickers â and I donât even own a car.

Ski Safari offers a seven-night package in Park City from £899 per person, and ten nights from £999 per person, including return flights from London Heathrow and accommodation. Seven-day lift passes to all three resorts from £319.www.skisafari.com